PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim said he will not accept any nominations for the upcoming party polls amidst a groundswell of support for him to officially take the helm of the party.

NONE Anwar ( left ) announced this through his blog today but did not give any reasons for the move.

This is unlikely to deter many party divisions which are set to nominate him for the top post for a second time since the last party polls in 2007.

He has won the endorsement of the Kedah PKR leadership, which has urged all divisions to nominate him for the presidency.

Anwar has also been endorsed for the top post by outgoing deputy president Syed Husin Ali , Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim and a group known as the Majlis Muafakat Kepimpinan Keadilan Selangor (Selangor Keadilan Leadership Consensus Council).

Back in 2007, Anwar had accepted nominations for the presidency and was pitted against his wife and incumbent Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and another little-known party member Abdul Rahman Othman.

Anwar and Abdul Rahman both withdrew from the contest at the eleventh hour and Wan Azizah won the post uncontested.

Anwar claims that his withdrawal was necessary because the Registrar of Societies threatened to dissolve the party if he was elected, because he was ineligible to hold party post for five years due to his corruption conviction.

                       

Following this, the party congress in 2007 agreed to make him the de facto leader.

'Don’t abuse my name '

Also in his blog, Anwar had words of advice for all aspiring candidates, reminding them to ensure that a clean contest and campaign takes place.

azlan “All candidates must strictly follow campaign ethics and not claim they have my endorsement,” he said.

He said that the party is making history with its one-member-one-vote direct elections for the party top leadership and thus the members must ensure that the party’s ideals for reform are carried out.

“We must take heed of this principle and not external demands or gratuity,” he said.

PKR’s 218 divisions will hold two separate meetings - the first to elect divisional leaders beginning this weekend, and a second meeting to vote for 26 supreme council members as well as president, deputy president and four vice-presidents.

The divisions will vote for top national leaders over four weekends from Oct 29 to Nov 21.